Telehealth abortions are on the rise since Roe was overturned three years ago. See charts
Three years after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, the total number of abortions continued to increase in 2024, totaling 1.14 million, a recent report found.
The Dobbs decision on June 24, 2022, upheld Mississippi's ban on abortion after 15 weeks. Since then, states have enacted a range of laws from near-total abortion bans to shield laws protecting patients from other states who travel to get the procedure. As of this year, 12 states have full bans on abortion.
The report was published by #WeCount, a project of the Society of Family Planning. #WeCount is a national reporting effort that tracks abortions in the United States after Roe v. Wade was overturned.
Here's how the total number of abortions has changed since the Dobbs ruling:
The monthly number of abortions increased in 2024 compared with prior years, according to the #WeCount report. When looking at monthly abortions in 2024, the total was higher than monthly abortions in 2023 and 2022.
'The #WeCount findings make clear that abortion bans haven't stopped people from seeking care,' Alison Norris, #WeCount's co-chair, said in a statement.
'As care shifts across state lines and into telehealth care, what's emerging is a deeply fragmented system where access depends on where you live, how much money you have, and whether you can overcome barriers to care,' Norris said.
Telehealth abortions are on the rise
At the end of 2024, a quarter of all abortions were delivered through telehealth − a significant increase compared with the second quarter of 2022, when 5% of abortions were provided through telehealth, according to #WeCount.
Which states have shield laws for abortion care?
Nearly half of all telehealth abortions provided in 2024 were in states with shield laws, the report found. According to the UCLA Center for Reproductive Health, Law, and Policy, shield laws provide "legal protections for patients, health care providers, and people assisting in the provision of certain health care in states where that care is legal from the reach of states with civil, criminal, and professional consequences related to that care."
At least 22 states and the District of Columbia, have shield laws for reproductive care. California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington protect clinicians no matter where the patient is at the time reproductive care is provided, KFF reported.
According to #WeCount, an average of 12,330 abortions a month were provided under shield laws at the end of 2024.
Expanded protections for clinicians along with access to medication abortion have allowed patients to receive care outside states with full abortion bans. In 2023, medication abortion made up two-thirds of all abortions, the Guttmacher Institute found.
The most common medication abortion regimen in the United States involves two medications: mifepristone and misoprostol. The two-drug regimen can be used up to the first 10 weeks of pregnancy, according to the FDA.
Which states outlaw abortion medication?
Of the states where abortion is still legal, 12 have at least one restriction that requires one or more visits to the clinic, effectively banning telehealth for medication abortion.
Twenty-six states and the District of Columbia have no restrictions around abortion medication and do not require telehealth appointments to be prescribed the pills.
CONTRIBUTING Kinsey Crowley
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USA Today
10 hours ago
- USA Today
Telehealth abortions are on the rise since Roe was overturned three years ago. See charts
Three years after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, the total number of abortions continued to increase in 2024, totaling 1.14 million, a recent report found. The Dobbs decision on June 24, 2022, upheld Mississippi's ban on abortion after 15 weeks. Since then, states have enacted a range of laws from near-total abortion bans to shield laws protecting patients from other states who travel to get the procedure. As of this year, 12 states have full bans on abortion. The report was published by #WeCount, a project of the Society of Family Planning. #WeCount is a national reporting effort that tracks abortions in the United States after Roe v. Wade was overturned. Here's how the total number of abortions has changed since the Dobbs ruling: The monthly number of abortions increased in 2024 compared with prior years, according to the #WeCount report. When looking at monthly abortions in 2024, the total was higher than monthly abortions in 2023 and 2022. 'The #WeCount findings make clear that abortion bans haven't stopped people from seeking care,' Alison Norris, #WeCount's co-chair, said in a statement. 'As care shifts across state lines and into telehealth care, what's emerging is a deeply fragmented system where access depends on where you live, how much money you have, and whether you can overcome barriers to care,' Norris said. Telehealth abortions are on the rise At the end of 2024, a quarter of all abortions were delivered through telehealth − a significant increase compared with the second quarter of 2022, when 5% of abortions were provided through telehealth, according to #WeCount. Which states have shield laws for abortion care? Nearly half of all telehealth abortions provided in 2024 were in states with shield laws, the report found. According to the UCLA Center for Reproductive Health, Law, and Policy, shield laws provide "legal protections for patients, health care providers, and people assisting in the provision of certain health care in states where that care is legal from the reach of states with civil, criminal, and professional consequences related to that care." At least 22 states and the District of Columbia, have shield laws for reproductive care. California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington protect clinicians no matter where the patient is at the time reproductive care is provided, KFF reported. According to #WeCount, an average of 12,330 abortions a month were provided under shield laws at the end of 2024. Expanded protections for clinicians along with access to medication abortion have allowed patients to receive care outside states with full abortion bans. In 2023, medication abortion made up two-thirds of all abortions, the Guttmacher Institute found. The most common medication abortion regimen in the United States involves two medications: mifepristone and misoprostol. The two-drug regimen can be used up to the first 10 weeks of pregnancy, according to the FDA. Which states outlaw abortion medication? Of the states where abortion is still legal, 12 have at least one restriction that requires one or more visits to the clinic, effectively banning telehealth for medication abortion. Twenty-six states and the District of Columbia have no restrictions around abortion medication and do not require telehealth appointments to be prescribed the pills. CONTRIBUTING Kinsey Crowley
USA Today
13 hours ago
- USA Today
Planned Parenthood isn't the only loser in Supreme Court case. Women lose, too.
While Democrats have shied away from talking about abortion since the 2024 presidential election, it is still an issue Republicans are rallying around. Almost three years to the day since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the justices have once again made a decision that will limit access to reproductive care. This time, they're explicitly coming after Planned Parenthood. On Thursday, June 26, the Supreme Court ruled in a decision that could allow states to keep Medicaid dollars from the organization. In the 6-3 ruling, the justices determined that individuals could not sue to choose their health care provider after a patient sued South Carolina to receive reproductive care from Planned Parenthood. By making this decision, the courts are potentially shutting Planned Parenthood out of millions of dollars that would go to necessary health care options like birth control, cancer screenings and testing for sexually transmitted infections. It's a ruling that, like Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson pointed out in her dissent, is going to harm people who rely on Planned Parenthood for their care. The plan was always to end abortion in every state It's just another instance of conservatives ignoring the realities of women's health care in favor of their beliefs, and a reminder that abortion continues to be a Republican target. It's also a reminder that we'll be living in this dystopian health care nightmare for a very, very long time. While Democrats have shied away from talking about abortion since the 2024 presidential election, it is still an issue Republicans are rallying around. They were never going to be satisfied with simply returning abortion rights back to the states, the plan was always to eradicate the health care procedure nationwide. Opinion: Who would want to have babies under a Trump administration? Not me. In May, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ordered the Food and Drug Administration to review mifepristone, an abortion medication, because of a study from a conservative think tank that relies on flawed data. The majority of abortions in 2023 were medication abortions. If mifepristone were suddenly taken off the market, it would have huge ramifications for patients across the country. Planned Parenthood was also already struggling after President Donald Trump froze federal funding to more than 100 clinics earlier this year. It has led clinics across the country to shut down. His One Big Beautiful Bill Act also would block Medicaid patients from seeking care at Planned Parenthood, which could lead to more closures. None of this is happening in a vacuum. All of these Republican attacks amount to a nationwide assault on abortion rights, no matter where one is located in the country. Millions of people could soon lose access to the care they need because of the Republican agenda. Abortion bans aren't working. Defunding Planned Parenthood won't change that. Despite these targeted attacks on abortion, the procedure hasn't become less popular in the years following the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization decision. In 2024, there was actually an increase in abortions, with a quarter of those procedures occurring via telehealth for medication. Public opinion on abortion has remained steady, with Pew Research Center reporting that 63% of Americans supported abortion in all or most cases in 2024. Opinion: Democrats don't need to move to the center. Mamdani proves progressives can win. Clearly, Republican leaders are only listening to a small subset of their constituency when they decide to go after Planned Parenthood. They do not listen to the millions of people who have benefited from the wide range of services that the organization provides. Instead, they would rather spread falsehoods about abortion and how it is funded. They will not be happy until abortions are nearly impossible to obtain, even when someone's life is at risk. The Supreme Court's latest cruel decision shows that we are still living with the long-term repercussions of having Trump nominate three justices to the bench. And this is just the beginning. It's clear nothing is going to stop Republicans from attacking Planned Parenthood until it's unable to function because of a lack of government funding. It's shameful that they continue to put a political agenda ahead of the health care needs of women. It's also not changing anytime soon. Follow USA TODAY columnist Sara Pequeño on X, formerly Twitter: @sara__pequeno
Politico
a day ago
- Politico
The politics of Dobbs persists
Greetings from Illinois, where we relish the summer heat. Thanks to Katherine Long and Emma Cordover for letting me jump in to today's Women Rule discussion. You can find me at skapos@ Programming note: This newsletter is on hiatus until July 11 for the federal holiday in the U.S. CHICAGO, Illinois — The political action committee that for decades supported candidates who back abortion rights in Illinois — making the state a haven for reproductive choice — is taking its political playbook to red states, including Indiana and Arkansas, which virtually ban the procedure. 'Since Roe fell, there are many PACs bubbling up in different states. I've been talking to new organizations, sharing our playbook, our questionnaires and ideas about where to start,' Personal PAC CEO Sarah Garza Resnick tells Women Rule. It's been three years since the Supreme Court's Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade, giving states more authority to restrict abortion. The decision has emboldened states that are working to ban abortions, and it's also transformed blue states like Illinois, which are seeing abortions rise as more patients are crossing their borders seeking reproductive health care. Data from the Illinois Department of Public Health shows there were 11,307 out-of-state abortions in Illinois in 2021, the year before Dobbs. In 2022, there were 16,849 abortions for people from out of state, and 2023 saw 26,168 out-of-state abortions. The Dobbs ruling created a ripple effect that's going to further divide states and create islands of reproductive care across the country, Garza Resnick says. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Along with seeing more patients, how else are blue states feeling the impact of Dobbs three years later? It's affecting the medical profession. There are places where doctors can't practice. They're gagged from talking to clients about abortions, which are a medical necessity. There are gynecologists leaving some states, so people with dire health care decisions won't have access to gynecological care, including abortion. It impacts everyone. There won't be enough doctors in years to come to get normal pap smears or mammograms and all the other things we need. Georgia is seeing doctors leaving the state, and in Missouri, gynecological residency programs are being affected. In Illinois in 2024, we saw 35,000 people become medical refugees and were forced to flee the states where they live with their families to come here to get abortion care. Illinois saw the largest amount of out-of-state patients, the next state is North Carolina, with almost 17,000 out-of-state patients traveling there for care. Why is Illinois seeing an influx over New York or California? It can be hard to travel to California or New York. It's more expensive. People go to places where they can drive. Has the Dobbs decision emboldened members of Congress? Federal Medicaid doesn't cover abortion care. But from city halls to Congress, anti-abortion politicians have been throwing every type of abortion restriction at the wall to see what sticks. Policies that we once considered 'extreme' are making their way through legislatures across the country. How has Dobbs shifted the political landscape? Unfortunately, abortion has always been a political issue because politicians think that they know what is best for women and our bodies and want to control us. Fortunately, abortion has always been popular. I think more campaigns need to stop siloing abortion off as a separate issue. For example, abortion is an economic issue because having a kid when you're not ready can upend your job, education and ability to make ends meet. What are you advising other states trying to mirror what your PAC is doing? We are working with advocates in other states to replicate Personal PAC's winning model of sending candidate questionnaires and educating people running for office. We are 100 percent pro-reproductive freedom, with no exceptions. Is there room for the candidate who opposes abortion rights personally but supports a woman's right to get one? You don't know what you're going to do until you're in that circumstance. Myself, as somebody who's had an abortion, I didn't anticipate an unplanned pregnancy. I would never judge somebody whatsoever about making the other choice. So yeah, I do think that somebody can say, 'I personally wouldn't have an abortion, but I don't think that the government should be involved in someone's pregnancy decisions.' I would stand behind that person. The Supreme Court just upheld Tennessee's ban on gender affirming care for transgender minors. Is that a residual effect of Dobbs? The idea that the government can tell me and my child and their doctor what is best for them is exactly what the anti-choice movement has done to women and our health care. All of these cases are linked. What links access to birth control for married people and the ability for women to decide what to do with their bodies and gay marriage is case law that had been decided over the course of many decades by the U.S. Supreme Court. It's all an issue of control. Have you seen an increase in aggression against abortion clinics or against candidates? We've definitely seen an escalation: bomb threats, arsons, blockades, stalking of clinics and staff have all increased sharply. And, of course, the tragic murders [in] Minnesota. Recently, abortion and IVF clinics have been hit by car‑bombings, firebombs, suspicious packages and surveillance that often crosses the line into doxxing and intimidation. We can't become numb to this political violence. It can never be seen as normal. How do you see abortion rights playing in the 2026 midterms? There are ballot measures related to it in Missouri and Nevada. Unfortunately, ballot measures are not a quick fix. You can see this playing out in states like Ohio, where the majority of Ohioans came out to enshrine the right to abortion in their state constitution, and yet there's still limited access to abortion there. Now, the legislature is trying to undo the will of the voters by introducing an abortion ban bill. It's deeply frustrating. What we've advised in Indiana and other states trying to do this work is that at a very local grassroots level, this takes time. We need patience. The anti-choice movement has been incredibly deliberate for decades in controlling the messaging about how we think about our own bodies.' POLITICO Special Report Planned Parenthood Turns to States for a Lifeline by Rachel Bluth, Katelyn Cordero and Ben Jacobs for POLITICO: 'Planned Parenthood is pushing governors and legislators in California, New York and other blue states to cobble together emergency funding that will allow them to keep the lights on should the spigot of federal money run dry. The Republican budget proposal moving through Congress would in one fell swoop prohibit most abortion providers from getting any federal funding, including Medicaid dollars.' Rep. LaMonica McIver Pleads Not Guilty as Watchdog Group Files Complaint Against Alina Habba by Ry Rivard for POLITICO: 'Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.) appeared in court Wednesday morning in front U.S. District Court Judge Jamel Semper on a trio of charges following a May scuffle outside a federal immigration facility. 'Your honor, I plead not guilty,' she said. … McIver is accused in a three-count indictment of slamming a federal agent with her forearm, 'forcibly' grabbing him and using her forearms to strike another agent. Allegations of physical violence by a sitting member of Congress are rare, with a handful of incidents including the pre-Civil War caning of a senator by a member of the House.' Meet the Face of France's Pro-Palestinian Camp by Victor Goury-Laffont for POLITICO Europe: 'PARIS — Rima Hassan's journey aboard the Freedom Flotilla didn't end when Israeli forces intercepted it in the Mediterranean. It concluded before a sea of Palestinian flags being waved by cheering supporters back in Paris. Hassan, a 33-year-old Franco-Palestinian MEP, had just returned to the French capital on June 12 after spending a week on the open water, followed by three days in Israeli custody after attempting to bring aid into the blockaded Gaza Strip. The boat was not nearly big enough to carry sufficient aid to stave off the looming humanitarian catastrophe in the besieged coastal enclave. Speaking to the crowd alongside fiery hard-left French presidential candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon, Hassan admitted it was 'mostly symbolic.'' Number of the Week Read more here. MUST READS Mamdani's Wife, Absent for Much of Campaign, Is Thrust into Spotlight by Taylor Robinson for The New York Times: 'Zohran Mamdani stood before a cheering crowd late Tuesday night at a Long Island City bar, his victory in the Democratic primary for mayor of New York City all but guaranteed. His wife, Rama Duwaji, stood at his side, smiling, as he concluded his speech. Many already knew Ms. Duwaji, 27, from the wedding photos that Mr. Mamdani posted to Instagram last month, showing the couple holding hands on the subway and in the streets of downtown Manhattan. Ms. Duwaji is an animator and illustrator whose designs have appeared in The New Yorker, the BBC and The Washington Post, according to her portfolio website. She is ethnically Syrian and was born in Texas, a campaign spokeswoman said, and she holds a master's degree in illustration from the School of Visual Arts in New York.' Malala Turns Her Fight for Equality to Women in Sports by George Ramsay, Amanda Davies and Aleks Klosok for CNN: 'Malala Yousafzai is known by millions around the world as an activist and human rights campaigner, a voice of power and inspiration who survived an assassination attempt by the Taliban at age 15. Perhaps less well known is her life as a sports fanatic. But take any major women's sports event from the past few years and you can bet on Yousafzai being in the stands, whether that's cricket, soccer, basketball, netball or the Olympic and Commonwealth Games. She even chose to spend a freezing Valentine's Day evening with her husband, Asser Malik, watching American rugby star Ilona Maher turn out for English club side Bristol Bears.' Supreme Court Allows States to Cut Off Medicaid Funding for Planned Parenthood by Ann E. Marimow for the Washington Post: 'A divided Supreme Court on Thursday ruled against Planned Parenthood, saying Medicaid patients do not have a right to sue to obtain non-abortion health care from the organization's medical providers. The decision allows South Carolina to cut off Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood. It also has implications for patients in other states at a time when Republicans in Congress and the Trump administration are separately trying to defund even non-abortion health care offered by the nation's largest abortion provider.' QUOTE OF THE WEEK Watch the interview here. on the move Rachel Thomas is now senior director of corporate communications at Flagship Pioneering. She most recently was director of strategic communications for implementation in the Biden White House. (h/t POLITICO Playbook) Kate Kamber Brennan is joining Rational 360 as SVP of digital. She previously led stakeholder targeting programs for Edelman's global business marketing team. (h/t POLITICO Playbook) Na'ilah Amaru is now senior director of mobilization and engagement at the League of Women Voters. She was previously pursuing a Ph.D. in political science at the CUNY Graduate Center. (h/t POLITICO Influence)
